Spanx are obviously huge, and getting bigger. How — and why — did the girdle come back?

Victoria's Secret's "Sexy Little Bride" line is confusing: is it bridal lingerie, or some kind of kinky bride costume? Or both? The copy doesn't help: "I do Sexy! Who will you be tonight? Sexy little fantasies: There's one for every sexy you." All we know is, the juxtaposition of the veil and the lingerie is kind of…

Not that you can be one. You can't. In the words of one writer, "There is no democracy in angel land."

Call me old-fashioned, but I've always believed a certain degree of discretion — or, really, confidentiality — should prevail in professions like gynecology, drugstore clerking and bikini waxing. And now I'm thinking this should extend to bra-fitting.

In 10 Things I Hate About You, we were told that black underwear means you plan on having sex. A new survey kind of confirms it. Among other sweeping generalizations!

We wish we could say we believed this line of "Sexy Little Things" (found in "Sleep and Lounge") had anything to do with Halloween. Click to enlarge for the full experience. Assuming you'd even want that.

The celebrated bloomers of Queen Victoria, which came to light earlier this year and whose 50-inch waist proved a surprise to whatever historians monitor royal waistlines, have been added to Kensington Palace's Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection. [Independent]

"A series of magnets scientifically arranged form minute batteries, recharging the blood with magnetism, without which life cannot exist, furnishing a wonderful remedy for Nervousness, General Debility, Indigestion, Rheumatism and Paralysis, the effect being exhilarating to the Wearer." [Vintage_Ads]

Oh joy! Today brings us not one but two stories on the inevitable "man girdle." Yes, this is a "thing". [NYT, Chronicle]

The "secret to Marilyn's curves" (as opposed, we suppose, to genetics) has been revealed in the form of some bra's "three cunning tricks."

Allen Gant invented pantyhose because his pregnant wife didn't feel like bothering with garterbelts. "It was wonderful. Most people my age loved them from the very beginning and couldn't wait to get a hold of them," she says. [Smithsonian]

A new survey finds that the average woman washes her bras only six times per year. What? It's not like we're talking about panties here. [Daily Express]

Fascinating response on Muslimah Media Watch to the "Syrian lingerie" media blitz, which, says the author, confuses "sexy" with "sexuality." But...we just want everyone to have nice bras!

Three words: Star Trek Corset. [BoingBoing]